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Down's Syndrome sufferer sues trust over 'do not resuscitate' order

The QEQM hospital, Margate
The QEQM hospital, Margate

A man with Down's Syndrome is suing a Kent health trust after a 'do not resuscitate' order was put on his file.

The patient, who had developed dementia, was taken into the Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother hospital in Margate to have a tube fitted to give him food and medication.

But the first his family knew of the instruction was after he was discharged, and staff at his care home found the order in his bag.

The note gave his condition as the reason, and instructed staff not to intervene in the event of cardio or respiratory arrest.

Lawyers for the 51-year-old's family have condemned the order as "blatant discrimination".

But the East Kent Hospitals Trust said it was just following national guidelines.

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